Former Masters champions Bubba Watson and Patrick Reed do not expect any issues when LIV Golf International Series and PGA Tour players meet at the famous Augusta major.

Watson and Reed are among 17 LIV Golf stars set to feature at The Masters, with six of those rebel golfers automatically qualifying with a lifetime exemption after winning the tournament.

Cameron Smith, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau are also part of the breakaway league but able to play due to winning a major in the last five years.

Major competitions are the only place the two sets of golfers can feature after the PGA banned those who joined the Saudi-backed rebel series for record purses and 54-hole events.

But Reed, speaking ahead of the LIV Golf League event at Orlando that starts on Friday, does not foresee any animosity when the two groups tee off at the Augusta National Golf Course on April 6.

"It's one of those things, the media and the storylines are going to be obviously LIV versus PGA Tour and all that kind of stuff," 2018 Masters champion Reed said.

"But really the majors, that's all the guys that come in, top players in the world are going and playing against each other, no matter where they come from.

"It doesn't matter what tour they're on or anything; it's the top guys going and trying to play for one of the most coveted events in the world.

"For us, at least for myself, it's going to be business as usual going out and playing. Would I like to have LIV be up at the top? Of course.

"But really at the end of the day, it's all of us going in there and just trying to play the best golf we can and be ready for the four biggest weeks of the year."

Watson, a two-time Masters victor, echoed Reed's sentiment as the American reiterated the only issues between players are coming from media speculation.

"It's only awkward in the media," Watson said. "I've talked to people that are going to be there. I'm going to sign up with Jason Day and Cam Young in the par-three and some guys have already asked me to play some practice rounds.

"The media is the only one that is pushing it. I have nothing against anybody. If you change jobs, I'm not mad at you."

Koepka was another big-name superstar LIV managed to secure from the PGA and the four-time major winner says it would be a "big statement" for whoever wins in Georgia, regardless of allegiances.

"Anytime you win the Masters, it's going to be a big boost off the golf course for you," Koepka said. "I don't care who you are. Look at anybody that's won it, I guarantee they would say the same thing.

"I can't speak for what would happen because I don't know the future, but I'm assuming that would be a massive, massive boost for any team, player, individual, whatever, it doesn't matter what it is, it's going to be a big boost.

"Anytime you win The Masters or The Open, that's usually a pretty big statement."

New Zealand's Danny Lee won a dramatic four-way playoff at the LIV Golf Tucson as Sergio Garcia's Fireballs GC took out the team event by four strokes on Sunday.

The 32-year-old South Korea-born Lee, who turned professional in 2009 but only won once on the PGA Tour, held his nerve in the playoff to edge out Carlos Ortiz, Louis Oosthuizen and Brendan Steele.

Lee, in his second LIV Golf event, claimed victory in style in the third playoff hole with a putt from off the green on the 18th hole.

"The individual victory means a lot," Lee said. "I haven't won since 2015. I just felt like winning is just not my thing but today just changed that. It’s good to see I’m capable of playing some good golf."

Lee had spurned the chance to clinch victory a hole earlier when he missed a six-foot birdie putt after a brilliant approach.

The New Zealander was part of Kevin Na's Iron Heads GC, who finished third in the team rankings at 19 under, with Garcia's Fireballs winning at 25 under. Dustin Johnson's 4Aces were second at 21 under.

"I wasn’t even looking at the individual score all day," Lee added. "I was only asking about 'how is our team doing?'. That's the reason why Kevin [Na] called and that’s the reason I’m over here."

Oosthuizen had looked the favourite on the players' leaderboard down the bank nine but dropped shots, only to produce an incredible birdie on the final hole to force his way into the playoff.

Steele stayed in the hunt with a fine par save on the 16th after his approach slid off the green and into the rough. Ortiz surged into contention with a final day six-under round.

Marc Leishman came into the final round leading by two strokes, but posted a six-over 77 to tumble down the leaderboard into a tie for 13th.

Rory McIlroy missed the cut at The Players Championship on Saturday and pointed the finger at his off-course political workload, saying: "I'd love to get back to being a golfer."

The Northern Irishman, a talisman for the PGA Tour, has been a strong and vocal opponent of the LIV Golf series that has attracted a host of the world's leading players.

With LIV being a Saudi-backed series, questions have been asked about why players would sign up for a tour that critics consider an attempt at sportswashing due to that country's human rights record.

McIlroy has been working closely with top-level golf officials to improve the appeal of the US-based PGA Tour, with a revamped calendar for 2024 set to include eight additional no-cut tournaments, which it is hoped will prove attractive to anyone with wavering support.

Having an eye on the business side has affected his golf, though, the 33-year-old believes, and McIlroy bowed out at TPC Sawgrass after a delayed finish to the second round, which was affected by bad weather on Friday.

McIlroy agreed after his round when asked if it was fair to say the added responsibilities had taken their toll.

"Yeah, it is fair. I'd love to get back to being a golfer," he said. "It's been a busy couple of weeks, and honestly it's been a busy six or eight months.

"But as I said at the start of the week, everything has sort of been announced now, and the wheels have been put in motion, so it should obviously quieten down from here."

He followed an opening 76 with a 73 in round two, missing the cut by three shots at the flagship tour event.

McIlroy said his week had been "just very blah".

"You just have to be really on to play well here," he added. "If you're a little off, it definitely magnifies where you are off. It's a bit of an enigma. Some years I come here, and it feels easier than others. It's just a tricky golf course."

McIlroy said he would head to Augusta for "a couple of days" next week to familiarise himself with the Georgia course ahead of the Masters, which begins on April 6.

"I actually don't feel like I'm playing that badly at all," said the world number three. "A few miscues here and there, I putted it off the sixth green yesterday, and just stuff that was a little untidy here and there. But I hit the ball okay."

Canadian Adam Svensson held the 36-hole lead on nine under par after a 67, with American Scottie Scheffler second following a second-round 69, putting him two behind. Four players shared third on six under ahead of the third round getting under way: Ben Griffin, Min Woo Lee, Christiaan Bezuidenhout and Collin Morikawa.

Players who joined LIV Golf should not be allowed to return to the PGA Tour upon the expiration of their contracts with the breakaway circuit, believes Matt Fitzpatrick.

The PGA Tour has suspended players who signed up for the controversial Saudi Arabia-backed competition since its launch last year.

Speaking ahead of The Players Championship, where holder Cameron Smith will be absent after defecting to LIV Golf, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said there was no pathway in place should a player wish to reverse such a switch.

U.S. Open champion Fitzpatrick does not believe the PGA Tour should welcome them back, telling Sky Sports News: "My personal view is that you can't have your cake and eat it.

"I would not let people come back if they had gone to LIV, I just wouldn't.

"Don't get me wrong, they could turn around and say, 'You can come and play LIV if you want', but I don't want to do that. I want to stay here and I want to play DP World Tour and PGA Tour.

"I think it is incredibly unfair for the PGA Tour to do that and I would be staggered if they did allow them [to come back]. 

"I think if you spoke to Tiger Woods then he would probably have the same stance, although I don't know what other guys would have.

"If you have left the Tour that you have been on for so long and done so well, then you have left for something you think is better, even if it maybe is not always greener."

Despite Fitzpatrick's strong views on the LIV circuit, he reiterated his belief that defecting players should be allowed to represent Europe at the Ryder Cup later this year.

"Obviously I have just said there about not letting them back on the PGA Tour or DP World Tour, I completely agree with that, but the Ryder Cup is a completely different case," he said.

"For me, I would want the 12 best players on the team. Hopefully I am one of those, to try and win. That is what the goal should be, to try and win, not to be nice about who should be playing, in my opinion."

Cameron Smith's absence from the Players Championship and inability to defend his title is sad for the prestigious tournament, believes former winner Jason Day.

The reigning champion is missing from TPC Sawgrass this year following his defection from the PGA Tour to LIV Golf last season.

Smith, who also claimed The Open in 2022 before he made the move to join the Saudi-funded breakaway, is barred from competing after linking up with the rival tour, with Day conceding his omission from the field casts something of a shadow over the event.

"He lives five minutes down the road," he told Sky Sports. "I miss Cammy. I miss a lot of the guys that have gone over to the LIV Tour.

"Obviously I don't blame them for going over there. They had the opportunity to pick up whatever they wanted to, money-wise.

"They made a decision. [But] it is a little bit sad Cammy's not here this week. The decision has been made, and he's over there."

Day, the former world number one, is back at Sawgrass seven years on from his victory at The Players, which came on the heels of his only major win in the 2015 PGA Championship.

The Australian looks poised to continue into a new PGA era that will see the tour restructured, in an apparent response to the LIV's emergence.

The 2024 season will contain eight events with no cuts and limited fields of 70-78 players competing for elevated purses and FedEx Cup points.

Day refused to either endorse or criticise the expected changes though, adding: "I don't necessarily have an opinion. I just want to show up and win tournaments

"I know some guys will be divided. Regardless of what we do out here, there will be guys disappointed. Let's see how the designated events go. We've got to give it time and if they need to adjust they adjust."

The Floridian fairways and greens of Sawgrass are in a splendid state ahead of the Players Championship, but the same can hardly be said for professional golf as a whole.

Riven by conflict and division, the turbulence of the last year is reflected by who is absent this week. The defending champion, Cameron Smith, for starters.

A defector to LIV Golf, drawn in by a staggering signing-on fee of reportedly $100million, Smith traded his parking spot and right to practise at Sawgrass, his local course, for the Saudi bounty.

It would be difficult for anybody to turn down such riches, so rather than sit in judgement of the 29-year-old Australian it is a timely moment to look at where the sport finds itself, with the PGA Tour battling to retain talent.

Notorious LIV? Mo money, mo problems

Is the LIV tour really the black-hearted enemy to golf that some would portray it as? It obviously would say not, and its tour chiefs, headed by CEO Greg Norman, have mounted passionate defences of the splinter series that has put up huge sums to draw in many of the world's elite.

Golf can be a short-lived career for stars at the highest level, so young players may see an opportunity to make quick money and instantly set themselves up for life.

Those at the opposite end, who have made phenomenal money already but are perhaps seeing diminishing returns, have been handed opportunities to cash in on their big profiles for a late-career pay day. Look to the likes of Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood in this regard.

Would those in the middle be quite so tempted? The PGA Tour would hope they might show loyalty after being well served, so it will have particularly hurt to see the likes of Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed and Bryson DeChambeau make the leap across.

Norman has argued LIV is "unlocking potential", claiming in a News Nation interview in January that golf "has been stuck in a box for 53 years". 

Australian Norman also took criticism for declaring that "we've all made mistakes", when he defended the Saudi regime last year, responding to the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The fact LIV is bankrolled by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) has sparked suggestions golf is being manipulated for sportswashing purposes, and those claims are not going away.

How has the PGA Tour responded?

When the weapon in a fight is money, you have to find more of it to keep the troops happy.

The PGA Tour has hiked up prize funds at eight key events this season. Among these is The Players, where it has leapt from $20m last year to a $25m purse this week.

That announcement came last June. As recently as last week, though, the PGA Tour confirmed it would introduce designated events with limited fields and no cuts from 2024, in what it hopes is a compelling move to fend off more LIV defections.

Tour commissioner Jay Monahan described the eight 'no-cut' events for 2024 as "can't-miss tournaments", with players able to earn places through the regular tour season.

LIV Golf reacted to the announcement by stating on Twitter: "Imitation is the greatest form of flattery. Congratulations PGA Tour. Welcome to the future."

The PGA Tour insists there are striking differences, with the opportunity for players to earn spots through year-round competition, rather than being guaranteed a place week-in, week-out.

Tiger Woods has spoken of this being a "very turbulent" period for golf, but he remains committed to the PGA Tour, with the 47-year-old American said to have turned down an offer of around $700m to $800m.

Rory McIlroy is firmly opposed to LIV taking over, too, and the PGA Tour has kept a host of household names – the likes of Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay – while others have slipped away.

Looking at the no-cut events, McIlroy has said major sponsors "want a guarantee that the stars are there", and blue-chip investment will be essential if the PGA Tour is to keep raising prize pots.

"If that's what needs to happen, then that's what happens," the Northern Irishman added.

What next? Will others jump ship?

The LIV tour has expanded to become a 14-event season, running from last month's opening tournament in Mayakoba, Mexico, through to the November finale in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Eight of those events will take place in the United States, including the March 17-20 Tucson tournament.

It has a US TV deal now, with CW Network. The major sport networks have not picked it up yet, but this marks a significant stepping stone.

By next year, it may even be awarding ranking points, although that is far from certain to come to pass.

There will be LIV players allowed to compete at the Masters next month, and they are set to be able to compete at all four majors, while remaining exiled from the PGA Tour and Europe's DP World Tour, and quite possibly the Ryder Cup.

Chile's Mito Pereira and Colombian Sebastian Munoz have moved across from the PGA Tour this year, and the question is whether any more notable names will also be tempted.

Cantlay, who was rumoured to be considering a switch to LIV last season, said the no-cut PGA Tour step would "make the Tour stronger and put an emphasis on those weeks".

What about this week? It's a mess, isn't it?

Smith's absence is a tough one for the Players Championship to swallow. Organisers have been unable to herald the champion's return, and Smith would sooner be involved than on the outside, but he made his choice and this is the consequence.

In fact, last year's top three are all LIV-ing it up these days, with Anirban Lahiri and Paul Casey consequently not involved this week either.

Smith lives just down the road, and he told Golf.com he would "definitely be watching on TV", hinting he could even turn up to watch.

"I grew up my whole childhood watching the event and yeah I'd love to get out there," Smith said.

"I don't know how it would kind of be received, but getting out there and watching, walking around in the crowd, might be pretty funny."

In a serious, big-bucks business, there would be a sense of pantomime to that happening, and it seems unlikely Smith will roll up. But then this all seemed unlikely two years ago, and here we are.

Jon Rahm is a fan of the PGA Tour's recent changes to their schedule and prize money, and gave credit to LIV Golf during Tuesday's pre-tournament press conference at The Players Championship.

Rahm, who had won five of his previous nine events before last week's disappointment at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, has been the undisputed hottest player in golf this season.

With that form has come the title of world number one, as well as a nice boost to his bank account, having already won two of the four new 'elevated' events to take place so far on the PGA Tour calendar this year. He collected $2.7million for taking out the Sentry Tournament of Champions, and another $3.6m with his title at The Genesis Invitational.

The prize purses in those events have almost doubled since their designation as elevated events, designed to attract the tour's top players to the flagship tournaments – with 44 of the world's top 50 teeing it up at Bay Hill last week.

When asked what he thinks was the driving force behind the PGA Tour's recent innovations – including the announced no-cut events to debut next season – Rahm said it was obvious.

"Oh, it's LIV Golf," he said. "I mean, without a doubt. Without LIV Golf, this wouldn’t have happened.

"So to an extent, like I've said before, we should be thankful this threat has made the PGA Tour want to change things. 

"I think I said it last week, as well. I wish it didn’t come to the PGA Tour being, you know, under fire from somebody else to make those changes and make things better for the players, but I guess it is what we needed. 

"So, yeah, it is because of LIV Golf, otherwise we wouldn't have seen any of this."

While Rahm is thankful for the competition and the effects they have had, and has no hard feelings towards those who chose to jump ship, he reiterated that the PGA Tour is clearly the home of the most exciting and competitive golf.

"If you're not happy with the product, [LIV Golf signees] are free to do as they choose," he said. "I still think that the PGA Tour is the best platform for professional golfers. 

"Obviously they’re very different products and they differ in a lot of things, but it's not the same. Like I’ve said before, I’m not one to tell people what to do with their life and with their career. 

"I do think the changes that are happening are very positive – very, very positive. It’s only going to make it so, you know, the better players in the world play together more often, which at the end of the day is what the fans want to see."

His comments were similar to those from Rory McIlroy earlier this week, saying LIV Golf's presence forced the PGA Tour to reassess their "antiquated" format.

"I'm not going to sit here and lie; I think the emergence of LIV or the emergence of a competitor to the PGA Tour has benefitted everyone that plays elite professional golf," he said.

"When you've been the biggest golf league in the biggest market in the world for the last 60 years, there's not a lot of incentive to innovate.

"This has caused a ton of innovation at the PGA Tour, and what was quite, I would say, an antiquated system is being revamped to try to mirror where we're at in the world in the 21st century with the media landscape."

Rory McIlroy claimed the emergence of the LIV Golf Invitational Series "has benefitted everyone that plays elite professional golf" and whipped the PGA Tour into shape after years of being mired in an "antiquated" existence.

The Northern Irishman was not changing his tune and singing the praises of the Saudi-backed series, but he believes it has served as a timely jolt for the US-based PGA Tour, shaking it from a long stupor.

Ahead of this week's Players Championship at Sawgrass, McIlroy was part of a player meeting with PGA Tour bosses on Tuesday in which details of eight newly designated no-cut tournaments for next season were explained.

The limited-field events have sparked mockery from players on the LIV circuit, who have accused the PGA Tour of mimicking the breakaway series after previously being so critical.

There have also been suggestions of concerns from within the PGA Tour ranks that players with tour cards will be frozen out of the biggest events, making it a clear two-tier tour.

McIlroy, who has been heavily involved in strategy meetings, does not agree and believes there is ample opportunity for players to perform well and earn a place in the elite events, pointing out there would be 29 full-field tournaments next year.

He felt Tuesday's meeting had helped the sceptics, saying: "I think when more information and data was presented to them, the people that maybe had reservations about it I think came around, or at least were more informed on their opinions.

"I think the temperature in the room was nowhere near as hot as I anticipated it to be once the information was laid out."

McIlroy said players wanted to be convinced "that there's enough jeopardy built into the system". He admitted a previous meeting, held in Delaware last August, had been "very self-serving for the 20 players in that room", with tour chiefs talking them down and ensuring more flexibility was built into line-up potential for the no-cut events.

The world number three confirmed fields of around 50 players had been proposed at one point, with only 10 players dropping out each year. Now these lucrative tournaments will see 70 to 80 players involved.

"You know Tiger Woods won 26 no-cut events in his career, right. There's always been no-cut events," McIlroy said. "Jack Nicklaus won 20 no-cut events. Arnold Palmer won 17.

"There's precedent for no-cut events. The cuts that you have to make to get into those events, so making the play-offs, getting into the top 50, there's certain things that you have to do to qualify for those events. I think that's more than fair to warrant eight events a year that are guaranteeing the players four days."

McIlroy has been as vocal as anybody in opposing the LIV series, with the 33-year-old scathing about many of the players who have taken the tens of millions on offer.

Given its Saudi backing, and criticism of that country's human rights record, the LIV series has been cited by many critics as an attempt at sportswashing.

Superstars including Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau have joined LIV Golf, and the PGA Tour is determined to fend off the threat of any more luminaries leaving.

Cameron Smith, last year's champion at Sawgrass, is another who has taken the LIV money, and consequently will be absent from the field this week.

Asked how much of the change happening on the PGA Tour now, with prize money soaring, could be attributed to LIV's encroachment, McIlroy said: "A lot of it. I'm not going to sit here and lie; I think the emergence of LIV or the emergence of a competitor to the PGA Tour has benefitted everyone that plays elite professional golf.

"When you've been the biggest golf league in the biggest market in the world for the last 60 years, there's not a lot of incentive to innovate.

"This has caused a ton of innovation at the PGA Tour, and what was quite, I would say, an antiquated system is being revamped to try to mirror where we're at in the world in the 21st century with the media landscape.

"The PGA Tour isn't just competing with LIV Golf or other sports. It's competing with Instagram and TikTok and everything else that's trying to take eyeballs away from the PGA Tour as a product.

"LIV coming along has definitely had a massive impact on the game, but I think everyone who's a professional golfer is going to benefit from it going forward."

Cameron Smith could go from celebrated winner to spectator non grata at the Players Championship this week as the LIV Golf defector toys with a return to Sawgrass.

The Australian is banned from defending his title after leaving the PGA Tour for the lucrative Saudi-led series, a decision that came in the wake of his Open Championship victory last July.

USA Today's Golfweek reported Smith was stripped of his parking spot at Sawgrass and refused permission to practise at the course after making his career-changing decision.

He lives practically on the doorstep of the course, however, in a plush home just minutes away, and Smith hinted he will feel inclined to head for the course and pay at the gate, just so he gets to see some of the action first hand.

That would be a move that causes a major stir, with the rivalry between the competing tours at close to boiling point.

In an interview with Golf.com, Smith said: "I'm a little bit unsure, you know. That's where I live now, so I don't know, I'll definitely be watching on TV.

"I think it's a great event to watch. I grew up my whole childhood watching the event and, yeah, I'd love to get out there.

"I don't know how it would kind of be received, but getting out there and watching, walking around in the crowd, might be pretty funny."

Smith won by one stroke from Anirban Lahiri last year, landing what was then the biggest title of his career, which he went on to top at St Andrews.

Lahiri is also banned from competing, having committed to LIV, and the same applies to Paul Casey, who was third last year.

Play gets under way on Thursday.

The PGA Tour has confirmed plans to introduce designated events with limited fields and no cuts from 2024, in a bid to fend off competition from the rival LIV Golf circuit.

The tour has seen several household names – including Lee Westwood, Cameron Smith and Phil Mickelson – defect to the controversial Saudi Arabia-backed series since its launch last year.

On Wednesday, reports suggested a radical overhaul of the PGA calendar was on the agenda, with some events refashioned in the format of LIV Golf's no-cut, limited-field structure, while others would offer exemptions to players with strong ranking positions.

Tour commissioner Jay Monahan has now outlined the changes, with the 2024 season to contain eight events with fields of 70-78 players competing for elevated purses and FedEx Cup points.

"These smaller, designated event fields will not only deliver substantial, can't-miss tournaments to our fans at important intervals throughout the season, but they will also enhance the quality of full-field events," Monahan said.

"Together, this approach provides a schedule that is cohesive, compelling, consequential and with clarity for fans, players and sponsors alike."

The tour said eligibility criteria for the events will "reward top performers" while still providing opportunities for players to qualify, with the FedEx Cup standings largely used to determine entry.

The announcement attracted the ire of LIV Golf, with the official account of the breakaway tour tweeting: "Imitation is the greatest form of flattery. Congratulations PGA Tour. Welcome to the future."

Earlier on Wednesday, LIV Golf player Westwood took to social media to accuse the PGA of hypocrisy, saying: "I've spent the last year reading how good full fields and cuts are!"

Lee Westwood mocked PGA Tour plans to restructure their 2024 season with more no-cut events in a perceived response to the controversial LIV Golf breakaway.

The tour has seen several high-profile defections – including Westwood, Cameron Smith and Phil Mickelson – to the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund-backed series.

As a consequence, LIV Golf players have been barred from PGA Tour events, while the latter strengthened its so-called 'Strategic Alliance' with the DP World Tour (formerly European Tour).

However, a Golfweek report on Wednesday suggested a radical overhaul of the PGA Tour is in line for next year.

It would see several events refashioned in the format of LIV Golf's no-cut, limited-field structure, while other tournaments would offer exemptions for those with strong ranking positions.

The news prompted Westwood to suggest its plans are hypocritical after strongly opposing LIV Golf's emergence.

"So, [you would] do away with the [World Golf Championships]. Load the [Official World Golf Ranking] in your favour," he posted on Twitter.

"[You would] create 10 limited field events just for PGA Tour members. Add to that four majors, [the] Players [Championship], [the] FedEx Cup.

"That's a full schedule for a top player. That's growing the game [winking emoji]. What Strategic Alliance?"

He added: "I've spent the last year reading how good full fields and cuts are!"

Charles Howell III put together a blistering eight-under final round to secure a dominant victory at LIV Golf Mayakoba on Sunday.

In the first event of the LIV Golf season, Howell just got better as the week rolled on, posting a three-under 68 on Friday, before closing with a 66 on Saturday and a 63 to put the icing on the cake.

He finished four strokes clear of the field, also carrying his team Crushers GC to the team title. Along with Paul Casey, also in the top five at seven under, and captain Bryson DeChambeau at one under, Crushers GC gapped the competition by nine strokes.

It was Howell's first professional win since the 2018 RSM Classic, earning a $4million prize as the individual champion, as well as his share of $3m for the team's success.

Peter Uhlein ended up in second place at 12 under, but he had his sights set on the win prior to an ugly triple-bogey following a shanked drive, and a shanked provisional.

Branden Grace was third at 10 under, and then there was another three-stroke gap to the rest of the field.

Reigning Open champion Cameron Smith produced a four-under final round to climb into a tie for fifth at six under.

After winning the inaugural team title, 4 Aces GC were weighed down by a horrific seven-over final round from captain Dustin Johnson, but they still finished second in the team standings thanks to Uhlein and Pat Perez (five under).

Phil Mickelson will be pleased with his four-under final round, pulling him to one over for the tournament, while Bryson DeChambeau ended up at even par.

Four-time major champion Rory McIlroy believes the PGA Tour needs to take a leaf out of the NBA's book and build itself around star athletes.

The 33-year-old Northern Irishman, who has fiercely defended the PGA Tour amid the rise of LIV Golf, said the organisation could look at other professional sports leagues as models to rebuild itself for growth.

The PGA Tour is weighing up format changes like making at least some of the designated events limited-field, no-cut tournaments.

Tiger Woods spoke about the challenges of the PGA Tour's direction on Tuesday ahead of this week's Genesis Invitational in California, with McIlroy weighing in on Wednesday.

"If you look at the NBA's trajectory over the last 20 years, they've built that league around their best players and their stars, not around the 12th guy on the team," McIlroy told reporters.

"But because they've built that league up around the stars, the 12th guy on the team does way better than he used to, so that's sort of the way I've been trying to tell it."

McIlroy insisted that any PGA Tour changes would not "screw" the lower-ranked, bottom-half players who he sensed had concern around format adjustments that could squeeze them out of tournament fields.

"I've had tons of conversations with guys that are worried about what events they're going to play next year and all that," McIlroy said.

"The one thing I said, look, no one's trying to screw the bottom half of the tour here. If anything, we're trying to lift it up.

"The best players should be playing in them because ultimately the PGA Tour needs to be built around the best players because that's what will maximise the value of the product.

"But that doesn't mean that there's not great storylines further down that list, which we're all very cognisant of."

McIlroy can regain his number one ranking at the Genesis Invitational but laughed that status has been passed around "like a hot potato" in recent times, with last week's Phoenix Open winner Scottie Scheffler re-claiming it.

"Yeah, of course I care about it," McIlroy said. "I think it's a really cool thing to be ranked number one in whatever you do, but I think it just goes to show the level of depth and the level of talent that's out here.

"I literally have one average week, it wasn't even a bad week, just an average week, and there's always someone waiting to overtake you or to come and try to take that mantle from you. I think it's a great thing for the game.

"I've got a chance to get it back this week. You know, hopefully it's a bit of a sort of hot potato thing where me, Scottie and Jon [Rahm] sort of pass it around a little bit because it means we're all playing great golf."

Tiger Woods says the past 12 months have been a "very turbulent" period for golf following the launch of the LIV Golf series that has threatened the game's status quo.

The 15-time major champion will make his comeback at the Genesis Invitational on Thursday where he will tee off with Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas.

Woods, 47, will be making his first non-major PGA Tour appearance since the Zozo Championship in October 2020, having spent a lengthy time out after the car accident in February 2021 that left him with multiple significant leg injuries.

In the meantime, LIV Golf launched in June last year, with numerous high-profile players defecting from the PGA Tour, creating a divide and fractures within the sport.

"The past year since, if you go back to this week at Genesis last year to where it's at now, we all have to say it's been very turbulent," Woods said. "We never would have expected the game of golf to be in this situation, but it is, that's the reality.

"I was alluding to trying to create the best product. Obviously, they're a competitive organization trying to create their best product they possibly can, and we're trying to create the best product that we think for the future of golf, how it should be played.

"How do we do that? We're still working on it. We have so many top players that are aligned. We need to have our top players understand that we need to play around the world and create the best product possible.

"It's been an ebb and flow, it really has. And it's been difficult, there's no lie. You've seen our ambassador, Rory, go through it. It's been tough on him, but he's been exceptional.

"To be able to go through all that, I've been with him on all those conference calls and side meetings, and for him to go out there and play and win, it's been incredible."

The PGA Tour has been threatened by LIV Golf, which used eight 54-hole no-cut stroke play tournaments and a final Team Championship in its inaugural season to create a new and exciting product with a point of difference.

LIV Golf will evolve into a league format for the next season with a 14-event schedule and 48 contracted players.

Woods, whose foundation organizes the upcoming Genesis Invitational at the Riviera Country Club in California, said the PGA Tour is working on ways to maintain its position as golf's leading series to rival LIV Golf's updated offerings.

"We are in the process of figuring all that out," Woods said. "It's been a variety of different models and opinions. Trying to figure out what's the best product and competitive environment. What we should do going forward.

"Limited fields, what's the number? Cuts, yes or no? What's the number? How many players are playing the event? What's the ability to get into the designated events? How is [PGA Tour commissioner] Jay [Monahan] able to sell our product to the different sponsors across the board?

"There's so much give and take. It's still ongoing. It's been difficult. A lot of the players have been very forthright, which is great. We're trying to help our commissioner create what he can sell so all of us can benefit."

The Ryder Cup will not be "devalued" if LIV Golf Invitational Series players are barred from taking part, insists Justin Rose.

The build-up to this year's tournament in Rome has been overshadowed by debates surrounding the eligibility of players who signed up for the controversial Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf circuit.

The United States have already said their team will not feature any LIV Golf players, while the chances of any European LIV Golf participants qualifying could be limited by this week's arbitration hearing to establish whether they can play on the DP World Tour. 

Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Europe's three-time Ryder Cup champion Rose backed the tournament to cope with the absence of some of golf's biggest names.

"There is so much strength in depth, I don't think it will be devalued," Rose said.

"People like watching Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter. They bring a lot of passion. They will be missed for sure, but it is what it is.

"You have the powers that be, the traditional people who still have control of golf, and you have an upstart league that is trying to bring in a fresh idea and rival product.

"It's all good either way, they just can't both fit together in this scenario."

Rose, who ended a four-year PGA Tour title drought by winning the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on Monday, gave genuine consideration to an offer from LIV Golf, but the tour's inability to award world ranking points led to him rejecting the chance to join.

"There have been moments where it all sounds pretty good on paper," he said of LIV Golf. "The concept itself has been around for seven years and there are elements where it sounds really, really cool.

"There was never a moment in time when all the top players could get behind it because there were too many unanswered questions, specifically around world ranking points, that was the major hurdle I faced with the decision.

"I couldn't get away from the fact I wanted to play major championship golf. I don't have exemptions down the line so my clean way into the majors is maintaining a good world ranking.

"So that became a null and void, a non-negotiable, from my point of view."